


Endless Night, Dawning Day

by wildforce71



Category: Tomorrow People (1992)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-17
Updated: 2012-07-08
Packaged: 2017-10-19 12:30:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/200864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wildforce71/pseuds/wildforce71
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A breakout with no powers who doesn't feel like one of them leads the Tomorrow People into a web of danger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Megabyte, you are not picking the movie. Adam, help me out!**

**Sorry, Jade,** Adam ‘pathed, grinning. **You watch movies with Megabyte at your own peril. Didn’t I warn you about that?**

**You warned me about his jokes.** Jade even managed to sulk telepathically.

**Well, watch out for his movies as well. Don’t let him pick anything with ‘Attack’ or ‘Blood’ in the title.**

**Thanks, Adam, you just discredited my whole collection,** Megabyte grumbled.

Adam sat bolt upright suddenly, banter forgotten. **Shut up a second.**

**What, you can dish it out but you can’t take it?**

**Megabyte, I’m serious. Shut up for a second.**

He was vaguely aware that Jade was protesting and Megabyte was hushing her, but he was focusing on the weak brush against his shields.

**Someone’s in the water.**

**A break out?** Megabyte protested. **But we haven’t…**

Adam lost the rest of it as he teleported, crashing into the sea. Megabyte splashed in a moment later, gasping, “Over there!”

The body was floating limply; Adam snatched at it, catching a sleeve and teleporting back out.

Jade was waiting on the beach with two blankets in her arms. Adam took one, wrapping it awkwardly around the body in his arms.

“Is she breathing?” Megabyte asked, kneeling beside him.

Adam brushed back her hair, feeling for a pulse. “Yeah. She’s alive.”

“She’s bleeding,” Jade said, reaching for her hand.

“Looks like she had an IV,” Adam murmured.

“She’s wearing scrubs,” Megabyte agreed.

“Scrubs?”

“Hospital clothes, Jade.” Adam wiped away the blood with a corner of the blanket. “It’s not deep, look. It’s stopping already.” He glanced up, catching Megabyte’s eye. “Megabyte, go change. Jade, can you go down to the Ship and get some more blankets and things? We’ve got to get her warm.”

“Yeah,” Megabyte agreed, shoving to his feet. “We’ll be right back. Here.” He took the second blanket from Jade, draping it over Adam’s shoulders. “Come on, Jade.”

**Ami?** Adam ‘pathed.

**Here. What’s going on?**

**We’ve had a new break out, but she’s unconscious at the minute.** He glanced down, running gentle fingers over the IV mark. **Sedated, I think. But she’s soaked, she landed in the sea. Can you come and help?**

**Yeah. Just let me tell my mum. I won’t be long.**

**Adam? It’s ready,** Jade ‘pathed.

**Ok. We’re coming.**

 

It was just over half an hour before the girl — now wearing a pair of Ami’s trousers and one of Adam’s sweatshirts — stirred. Blinking several times, she stared up at the ceiling without any particular expression.

“Hi,” Adam said after a moment.

She rolled her head to study him. “Hi,” she answered, still expressionless.

**Adam, I don’t know who she is,** Megabyte pathed warningly. **She doesn’t feel like one of us.**

“My name’s Adam,” he offered.

She shifted, sitting up and dragging the blanket with her. “Adam.”

“Yeah. What’s yours?”

Her eyes went distant for a moment. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t…” Megabyte broke off sharply when Ami stepped on his foot.

“You don’t know your name?” Adam asked, moving to sit next to her. “What’s the last thing you remember?”

“I was afraid,” she said slowly. Adam noted the light Irish accent with some surprise. “And something very cold…” She touched the back of her hand, tracing the edge of the cut. “And then here.”

“Don’t.” Adam caught her hand as she pressed on the cut. “You’ll hurt yourself.”

“Is that all you remember?” Ami asked.

“Uh…” The girl looked at Adam.

“Ami,” he explained. “And Jade, and Megabyte.”

**Adam, this is wrong,** Megabyte protested mentally. **Tomorrow People don’t need to be introduced.**

**She teleported in, Megabyte,** Adam reminded him. **She is one of us.**

**Maybe.** Megabyte sounded unconvinced.

**She’s following you,** Jade said suddenly. **She knows you’re talking.**

**Can you hear me?** Adam asked, frowning.

The girl didn’t answer, but when Megabyte ‘pathed **She’s psi-deaf,** she turned to watch him.

“We’ll worry about it later,” Adam said out loud. “Right now we need to figure out who you are. Think, do you remember anything else?”

“Anything. Even a tiny thing,” Ami encouraged her.

The girl closed her eyes, biting her lip in concentration. “Sarah,” she said finally.

“Is that you?” Jade asked.

“No. It’s not my name. But it’s important.”

“Ok. That’s good,” Adam assured her. “Megabyte, can you and Jade go talk to your dad?”

**Don’t teleport out of this room,** he added mentally. **Let’s do this slowly.**

“Yeah,” Megabyte agreed. “Come on, kid.”

“Not a kid!” Jade protested, following him out of the room.

“Can we call you Sarah?” Ami asked. “Until we find something out? Or is there something else you’d rather use?”

“Sarah’s fine.” She twisted, pulling the blanket up awkwardly around her shoulder.

“Alright, Sarah.” Adam smiled. “Let me tell you a bit about who we are.”

 

“Well?”

The doctor hid a grimace. “She escaped.”

“Escaped?”

“Yes. She’s growing stronger; she overcame the serum.”

“Which you had diluted.”

“Because at this strength it killed the last subject. Each one is different, it needs to be tailored, and there are…setbacks.”

“Setbacks!”

“She’ll go home eventually. She’ll remember in a day or so. I’ll have people in place.”

“See that you do. There are other doctors who could work on this project, you know.”

The doctor waited for the screen to go dark before muttering, “There are other projects I could work on, you know.”

 

Megabyte waved to his dad’s secretary, ignoring her furious Don’t Go In There gestures, and steered Jade into the office. “Dad?”

“What is it, Megabyte?” Damon signed the last sheet in a pile Frank was holding and looked up. “Hi, Jade.”

“Dad, we need to talk to you,” Megabyte said quickly.

Damon studied him for a minute before nodding. “Frank, can you ask Trish to hold my calls?” Frank nodded, letting himself out. “What’s going on, son?”

“We had a breakout this morning, a girl,” Megabyte told him. “But she’s got amnesia or something. Doesn’t know who she is.”

“An amnesiac Tomorrow Person,” Damon murmured. “You want me to see if I can find anything out?”

“That’d be great. She’s sixteen or seventeen, Irish or Scottish or something, brown hair, blue eyes. She was wearing scrubs and she has an IV mark.” He touched the back of his hand.

“What colour scrubs?”

“Sorry?”

“What colour scrubs? Some hospitals use different colours for medical, surgical, inpatient, outpatient…”

“Blue. Those kind of papery ones.”

“She remembers the name Sarah,” Jade added. “It’s not her name, but she thinks it’s important.”

“Can I meet her?” Damon asked, frowning at his notes.

“Better wait a bit. Adam’s doing the show and tell. Why, you on to something?”

“No. Not yet. Look, hang around, will you? I gotta make a few calls.”

“Yeah, sure.” **Adam, my dad’s onto something, but he won’t tell me what.**

**Ok. We’ll be joining you soon. We’re almost done here.**

 

Adam looked across at Ami, who nodded slightly — she’d caught the message.

“You don’t know where you lived?” she asked, continuing the conversation they’d been having.

Sarah glanced back at her, running one hand over the wall behind her. “Not here?”

“Why do you say that?” Adam asked quickly.

“I just…it feels like home. I don’t remember it, but it feels so familiar.”

**She’s one of us,** Adam ‘pathed firmly. **We all feel that.**

**I felt it the first time I came here,** Ami agreed. **She’s following us again.**

“Can you hear us?” Adam demanded out loud.

“Huh-uh.” Sarah shook her head quickly.

“But you know we’re talking?”

“Yeah…” She took a quick step backwards when he stood, cramming herself into the corner.

“It’s ok.” Adam carefully stayed exactly where he was. “But how do you know, if you can’t hear us?”

“It’s like…” she took a wary step or two forward. “Like a tickle, like something’s brushing against my skin. Is it bad?”

“It’s unusual, is all. Most of us were hearing voices before we ever broke out.”

Sarah shrugged, turning back to the viewport. “You guys are the experts. I’m just along for the ride.”

**She’s very calm,** Ami ‘pathed thoughtfully.

**There may still be some drugs in her system.** Out loud, he added, “If you’re ready, Sarah, we should go see General Damon.”

“Why?” She came back to join them, still trailing the blanket.

“Cos he’s our best chance at finding out who you are.”

“I thought Megabyte’s dad…”

“Oh. Yeah, sorry, that’s him.”

“He runs a private security company,” Ami explained. “He has contacts all over the world. If you’re missing, he’ll find you.”

“If I’m missing,” Sarah repeated dreamily.

Adam frowned, glancing at Ami. “Sarah? What is it?”

“Nothing. I’m sorry.” She tugged the blanket up around her shoulders. “I’m ready.”

“Ok. Come here.” Adam laid a gentle hand on her arm. **Megabyte! Here we come.**

 

“They’re coming, Dad,” Megabyte reported, tossing aside the magazine he hadn’t really been reading. Damon hung up the phone, turning over the sheet he’d been writing on.

**ADAM!** Jade ‘pathed suddenly. **Don’t…**

Three forms appeared in the centre of the room. Adam was already on one knee as they solidified, supporting an unconscious Sarah.

“Adam!” Megabyte dropped beside him, taking her weight to let Adam check her pulse. “This is getting familiar.”

“Get her up.” Adam glanced up, catching General Damon’s eye. “Afternoon.”

“What’ve you brought me this time, Adam?” Damon asked, sweeping several newspapers off the couch.

“A mystery.” Adam eased her shoulders down, watching her for a moment before turning away.

“You’d think we’d had enough of those.” Damon muttered. “Tell me everything you know.”


	2. Chapter 2

Adam had gotten as far as 'She can sense us talking, but she can't hear us,' when Sarah woke, sitting up to look blankly around at them. After a moment she said cautiously, "Adam."

"Yeah." He moved to sit beside her, tugging the blanket up over her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I just…it took me a minute to remember." She glanced around at the others, grinning ruefully. "What happened?"

"Collapsed when you teleported," Megabyte explained.

"And Jade knew," Ami said suddenly, turning to look at her.

"I just felt really cold." Jade rubbed her arm. "Still haven't warmed up. I just knew it was a bad idea."

"It's cold in here," Adam said absently, gesturing her to sit next to him.

"No it's not," Damon protested.

"Dad. It's, like, arctic. Seriously."

"No, Megabyte, it's not."

Ami rose to look at the thermostat. "He's right, guys. It's perfectly warm."

"That might be my fault," Sarah apologised, huddling deeper into her blanket. "I'm freezing. Sorry."

"But you can't broadcast," Adam pointed out. "Can you?"

"Well, no. But you said all Tomorrow People can feel each other, all the time, right?"

"Yeah. Maybe."

"Tell you what," Ami said. "Come with Jade and me to my place. You can get a shower and we'll find you something warmer to wear."

**What about your mum?** Adam ‘pathed.

**Out for the afternoon, thank goodness. Jade, you don't mind, do you?**

**No.**

Sarah waited for them to finish before saying, "I'd like that. Thank you. Are..." She glanced at Damon uncertainly.

"No, go on. We can talk when you're feeling better."

**She can't teleport on her own,** Adam warned Ami.

"Hey, try not to faint this time, huh?" Megabyte was saying loudly, covering him. "I won't be there to catch you."

Sarah smiled faintly. "Thanks."

Ami reached to take her hands, nodding to Jade, and the girls vanished.

**We're ok,** she reported a moment later. **No major problems.**

"They're ok," Adam repeated for Damon's benefit.

"Adam, how sure are you that she's one of you?" Damon asked, leaning forward.

"Absolutely. Why?"

"You know who she is," Megabyte said.

"Maybe. I'm waiting for the pictures to be faxed over."

"Tell us." Adam came to sit at the desk, watching him intently.

"I have a report from a psychiatric hospital just outside Dublin. They have a missing person's with Sarah's description."

"Psychiatric," Megabyte repeated.

"No. That's not her," Adam said firmly.

"Adam, hear me out. The girl, Rachel, was voluntarily admitted eight months ago when she began..." He hesitated, looking down at his notes. "Hearing voices, and claiming the flood was coming to kill us all."

"Cobb," Adan muttered. "That's when Cobb was trying to flood the cereal fields."

"Two months ago she began claiming her nurse was abusing her. He was suspended while they investigated but there was no sign anything had happened and he went back to work a fortnight ago. Rachel tried to attack him and then discharged herself. Her doctor had her involuntarily committed and she was transferred to another hospital."

"Another hospital," Adam repeated slowly.

"St Sarah's," Damon said grimly. "But she never got there. The ambulance overturned, the driver died on impact and she vanished."

"But she only came to us a couple of hours ago," Adam pointed out. "Where was she before that?"

"That's all you found, Dad?" Megabyte asked, moving around the desk to look at his notes.

"Scores of missing children. No one else matches as well."

"But Sarah's not delusional. Megabyte, you _know_ she's not."

"I don't know anything about her, Adam. It's _wrong_."

"Why?" Damon asked, watching them.

Megabyte answered without looking away from Adam. "Tomorrow People always know each other. We can always sense each other."

"Lisa and I knew each other," Adam agreed. "Ami didn't need introducing...I think it's because _she_ doesn't know who she is. And she did teleport to us."

"Yeah, I suppose she did," Megabyte admitted. "Gives me the creeps, though."

"I know what you mean." **Girls? You ok?**


	3. Chapter Three

"Adam wants to know if we're ok," Jade reported.

"Much better, thanks." Wearing tracksuit bottoms and a thick jumper Sarah did look much better; her face had more color and she'd plaited her hair back off her face.

"Here you go." Ami handed her a cup and settled beside Jade. "You look warmer."

Sarah nodded. "Yeah. I'm sorry about before."

Ami waved it off. "Strange things happen when you're breaking out. It's no big deal."

"Yeah," Jade agreed. "Kevin ended up on top of a bus once."

"Kevin...?"

"Oh, he doesn't talk to us much anymore," Ami explained. "Concentrating on school."

"Are you ok?" Jade asked suddenly.

Sarah looked up in surprise. "Sorry?"

Jade gestured to her hands. "Are you ok? You're gonna pick a hole in your sleeve."

"Oh. Yeah." Sarah put down her cup, hooking her sleeve up.

Her arm was bruised and there was a needle mark in her elbow. "Pretty, huh?" she said shakily.

Jade splayed out her hand next to the bruises. "That's a handprint."

"Yeah. I figure I didn't want whatever was in the needle – must have scared me enough to teleport."

"Does it hurt?" Ami asked.

"No. A little stiff."

"I'm gonna tell Adam, ok?"

"Yeah." Sarah shook her sleeve back down, picking up her cup again.

"Tell you what," Jade said brightly, "let's do some tests. Here." Picking up a pen, she offered it to Sarah. "Ok, you're right handed. Now let's see if you remember how to write."

Ami went into the kitchen, dropping the empty cups in the sink. **Adam?**

 

Adam lifted his head, looking at Megabyte. "How did we miss that?"

"It wouldn't have been showing up yet."

"Missed what?" Damon asked.

Adam let Megabyte explain, turning his attention back to Ami. **Can you come back?**

**Yeah. We'll be with you in a minute.**

"They're coming back," he said quietly.

Damon nodded, holding out a sheet of paper. "Rachel's hospital record," he explained.

Megabyte, still standing beside his father, looked faintly sickened. "It's her."

"General, can you check out the hospital?"

"Working on it right now."

The girls appeared in the middle of the floor. "Sarah's right handed," Jade announced as soon as they were solid. "And she remembers how to write in English and Irish, but she keeps getting them mixed up, and she remembers maths..."

"...but I'm not much good," Sarah added. Glancing around the room, she sobered. "Oh lord. Who died?"

"Sit down," Adam said gently. She obeyed, pulling her knees up to her chest, and he added, "Can I see?"

She unfolded one arm, pulling up her sleeve. "Doesn't hurt."

"They're definitely recent," he murmured, fingers ghosting over the bruises. "Sarah, we have good news and bad news. The good news is we know who you are."

"The bad news is you're a loon," Megabyte added.

" _Megabyte!_ "

"What?"

"Marmaduke, go sit down," Damon said warningly. " _Now._ "

Adam turned back to Sarah, who hadn't reacted. "You ok?"

"Anything's better than nothing. So who am I?"

 

Sarah listened to her story, read her file, accepted Megabyte's apology, and then asked Jade to take her back to the island. "I need to think," she explained, "and you guys have more to talk about. I'm alright."

Jade was dutifully keeping her company on the beach, reading a book she'd found in the Ship. "Tide's turning," she remarked, laying the book aside. "We should move."

"What are they saying?"

"They're trying to find out about St Sarah's. It's been investigated a couple of times, but nothing serious, Adam says. Something about the cooking."

"Good to know, but I didn't _go_ to St Sarah's."

"No, but if other people went missing we might find something."

Sarah nodded, rising to her feet. "I think I'm going to go inside and lie down for a while."

"The guys were thinking of heading to your house. Talk to your parents."

"Ok," Sarah agreed.

"Don't you want to go with them?"

"Nuh-uh. It's Rachel's home, not mine. Until I remember something about them I don't want to go back there."

Jade scrambled to her feet as Adam appeared. "She doesn't want to go with you."

Adam frowned. "Sar...Rachel..."

"Sarah."

"Sarah, are you sure? We don't have to talk to them, but don't you want to see your home?"

**I'm sure,** she projected, putting all her certainty behind it. Adam rocked back, blinking, and she added, "It's not my home, Adam. Just another building."

"You're learning," he said distractedly.

"Maybe. I still can't hear anything, and it feels like I just broke my brain." She touched her temple gingerly. "Ow. I might wait a while before I try that again. You go explore, I'm gonna sleep."

"Are you sure? We can wait until you feel up to it."

"No. Go ahead. If other people are going missing you need to track them down, not wait for me."

"Alright. Feel better. Jade, what about you?"

Jade grimaced, knowing what he meant. "I'll stay here. Maybe I'll go get Jessie and give him a run."

**Good girl.** "Alright," he added out loud. "See you later."

**Not a kid!** she 'yelled' after him as he vanished. Turning to Sarah, she added, "I'm gonna go get Jessie and run him along the beach. If you need anything, I'll be up here."

"Thanks."


	4. Chapter Four

"Are you sure this is right?"

Adam glanced at the paper in his hand. "Yeah. This is it."

The house in front of them was burned almost out of recognition. The garden was straggly and uncared for, and a For Sale sign hung over the wall.

"Right." Megabyte turned his back to it, leaning against the wall. "Now what?"

Adam glanced around and jogged across the road. "Excuse me?"

An elderly lady pottering in her garden looked up. "Yes?"

"The people who lived in that house. Do you know what happened to them?"

"Well, they died, sweetheart. In the fire. Terrible thing, we could see it burning but wasn't one of us could get close. Too hot."

"What about their daughter?" Megabyte asked, joining them.

"Their daughter? She'd been gone near a year by then. Didn't come home for the funeral, either." Her eyes narrowed. "Why? D'you know her?"

"Friend of a friend," Adam said quickly. "Just passing through. Can I ask one more question? When was the fire?"

"Two months ago, give or take."

"Thank you." To Megabyte, he added, "Guess we may as well head back to the hotel."

"Yeah. Thank you."

**Two months ago's when Rachel began making trouble,** he 'pathed as they walked away.

**Yeah. That could be when she started breaking out.**

**Except she _hasn't_ broken out. We don't take two months, Adam.**

"I think we can teleport now. She can't see us."

They teleported into Damon's office and Adam continued, "I think she has broken out, but it's just like...something's blocking her."

"How'd you figure that?" Megabyte dropped into his father's chair.

"Better not let the General see you there. No, I just..." He shoved his hands through his hair, forcing order on his thoughts. "Teleporting's our most basic power, and teleporting away from danger's even more basic than that...it's how most of us break out. She knows when we're communicating, and she spoke to me that way earlier. It hurt her, but she did it. I think something's delaying her, blocking her powers."

"That stuff she was getting injected with?"

"Yeah, maybe." He glanced up as Damon came in.

"Oh, boys. Did you learn anything? Megabyte, out of my chair."

"Yeah, but it's not good." Megabyte retreated around the desk, sitting next to Adam.

"Rachel's parents died in a fire in their home, around the time she started acting up. The house is a total loss and the neighbors have written her off – I don't think they know she was committed."

"Fire," Damon repeated, reaching for a file.

"What is it?" Adam asked.

"My men noticed something interesting. St Sarah's have no missing patients at present."

"Well, sure they do," Megabyte protested. "Rachel's missing."

"Rachel's not a patient there. She's not listed as incoming, none of the doctors were expecting her, nothing. So we came at it the other way – we got lists of all the people referred to St Sarah's and checked they'd arrived."

He found the file he wanted, tossing it to Adam. "Three people have gone missing over the last eight years."

"Three," Adam repeated, flipping open the file.

"All their families suffered fires just before the transfers."

Megabyte leaned over Adam's arm, scanning the front sheet. "Found dead of exposure five days later, found wandering, insane, two weeks later, found dead of an aneurysm six weeks later. This isn't encouraging, Dad."

"It's getting longer," Adam murmured. "They're missing for longer. Sarah was only missing two weeks."

"Rachel," Megabyte corrected him.

"Hmm?"

"You said Sarah."

"She wants to be Sarah for now."

Damon gestured for the file back and shuffled through it, pulling out three pictures and passing them back. Megabyte spread them out on the low coffee table, studying them.

"They're us," Adam said, sickened. "Or they could have been. Tomorrow People who didn't break out."

Megabyte nodded, flipping the photos face down. "Someone's hunting us." 

"Megabyte, we need to go. We'll have to try mind merging with her."

"She doesn't know anything."

"It's got to be there somewhere. We have to try."

"Yeah."

Adam swept the pictures together, handing them back to Damon. "We won't be long, either way."

"Be careful," he warned them.

"We will, Dad."

 

Jade was lying on her back on the bench beside the main column, one arm flung over her eyes. _Perfect teen angst pose_ , Adam thought with a grin.

"Sarah's asleep," she said without looking at them.

Megabyte dropped to sit next to her while Adam headed deeper into the Ship. "Where's the mutt?"

"I took him home. I think he was bored," she said pointedly.

Adam returned, Sarah trailing behind him and still looking half asleep. "Where's Ami?" he asked.

"She hasn't been by." Jade sat up, watching as Adam's eyes unfocused. "What's going on?"

**Mind merge,** Megabyte 'pathed. **Adam thinks it might help.**

"Ami's coming," Adam said, focusing on them again.

"What's happening?" Sarah asked, easing down to sit.

"We want to try something," Adam said absently.

"Oh?"

**Adam, she's freaking out,** Megabyte warned him.

Sarah had pulled her knees up to her chest again, eyes wide. "Hey." Adam dropped to hunker in front of her, urging her legs down. "It's ok. It won't be hard or painful or anything. We're just going to see if we can knock something loose in there." He gestured vaguely towards her, keeping one hand on her knee.

"I don't _remember_ anything." Her knee bounced until Adam let go.

"You do, though. No one ever _forgets_ anything, it just gets filed away where you can't get to it." He shifted his weight, not wanting to stand and loom over her. "Will you let us try?"

"Can..." She drew her legs up again. "What if you don't like what's there? What if I did something bad?"

"We'll deal with it then. Sarah, people are dying. Tomorrow People are dying. Please let us try?"

"That's cheating," she muttered. "Pack loyalty. Yes, let's do it."

"Thank you," Adam said, moving to sit beside Jade. "Ami'll be here in a minute." **Jade, you ok?** he added.

**Yeah.** She leaned against him, though.

Ami appeared a few minutes later, looking around in surprise. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Adam told her.

"Just a little on edge," Megabyte added. "You ready?"

They formed a loose circle, Adam and Ami on either side of Sarah. "Try and remember what you were doing just before you teleported here," Adam coached her. "Before you ended up in the sea. What was happening?"

There was a flash that could have been anything; Adam pushed lightly, feeling the others join in, and the fog around them lifted.

_they/she was strapped down and couldn't move and a needle was descending towards their/her arm..._

Sarah jerked out of the merge, stumbling back a couple of steps, and teleported out.

 

Jade was shaking, one hand against her mouth, the other wrapped around her stomach. Adam wrapped an arm around her, tugging her against his side.

"That was...fun," Megabyte said quietly.

"They were trying to stop her breaking out," Ami said. "Why?"

"They're afraid of us," Adam said bleakly. "Megabyte, you need to go talk to your dad."

"Yeah. Jade, you wanna come?"

Jade nodded, pushing lightly away from Adam. He squeezed her shoulder, catching her eye when she looked back at him. "It's going to be ok. I'm going to find her now."

"I'll go with you," Ami offered.

"No." He turned back to her as Megabyte and Jade vanished. "She's scared. Let's not crowd her. Besides..." he frowned, eyes going distant. "I want to check something."

"What?"

He blinked, refocusing. "Probably nothing. I'll stay in touch."

 

Sarah was kneeling at the bottom of the garden, back to the house. "This was mine," she said without turning. Her voice was absolutely flat. "I begged for a bit of garden. Cried for days. When they gave in I couldn't keep it. Kept forgetting to water."

"Rachel..."

"Sarah."

"Sarah." He crouched beside her. "Are you alright?"

She choked back a sob. "Yeah. Confused, but ok. Who's doing this, Adam?"

"I don't know yet. Come back to General Damon's."

"Yeah." She didn't move, though, and he eased down to sit beside her.

"What were you trying to grow?"

"Rosemary and mint. I like the smells. I thought about tomatoes, but they're a lot of work...just say whatever it is, Adam."

He smiled faintly. "I will, but let's get back to the others first." He rose, holding out a hand.

Sarah was reaching towards him when he spun suddenly, staring at the man standing behind them. He hadn't been fast enough; a feathered dart thudded into his chest, just above his heart, and he looked down in surprise before toppling slowly to the ground.

 

"Very good, Doctor. Two for the price of one."

"The boy's older," the doctor pointed out. "It's going to be difficult to keep him under."

"Well, keep an eye on him, then. We can always move him on faster if you think it necessary."

"We may have to. I've already had trouble keeping him sedated for the baselines. Luckily I didn't need to spend any time on Rachel's...they're all on file already."

"Stay on top of it, Doctor. I'll be waiting for your reports."


	5. Chapter Five

"Sir!" Frank caught up to General Damon, passing him a file.

Damon scanned through it, frowning. "Damnit. Keep on it, will you?" Frank nodded, peeling off, and Damon turned to eye his office door.

He didn't want to go in. Megabyte and the girls were sitting vigil, had been since Adam and Sarah had disappeared, and every time he went in they looked up hopefully. And every time he had to tell them he had nothing.

Ami wasn't there this time, but Jade was playing listlessly with a magazine and Megabyte was sitting at his computer, studying it intently. Neither looked up when he entered.

"Where's Ami?"

"Gone home. Her mother's worried," Jade said dully.

"What about your mother?"

"I haven't been home. I called her yesterday."

Damon thought about protesting – Penny Weston would certainly be worried – but he didn't really have the energy. "Any luck?" he asked instead, sitting on his desk beside Megabyte.

He didn't answer; Damon craned his neck to look, but he couldn't read the code flying across the screen. "You're not doing anything illegal, are you?"

"Yes."

"Megabyte..."

"We have to find him, dad! He..." Megabyte bit his lip, looking at Jade.

"He's fading away," Jade murmured.

"So if I have to hack every system between here and the Pentagon I will."

Damon turned away, unlocking a drawer of his file cabinet and digging through it. After a moment he unearthed a thin file; holding it up to catch Megabyte's attention, he dropped it on the desk.

"What's..."

"Passwords and back doors into all the systems you should need." Megabyte blinked, looking up at him, and he added gently, "I was a spy, son, remember? Old habits die hard. No..."

He caught the file before Megabyte could get his hands on it. "First, you go shower, eat, and sleep for at least..." He considered his son, "Four hours. Jade can stay awake that long, if Adam calls she'll wake you."

"Dad..."

"Megabyte. You haven't slept in four days. You're not going to help this way. Even Tomorrow People need sleep."

Megabyte eyed the folder. "Four hours?"

"And a meal and a shower. You can come back here in five hours."

He looked at Jade. "You'll wake me?"

"Straight away." She crossed her heart, smiling angelically.

"Despite that, I'm gonna go." He glanced at his father. "Mum and Millie home yet?"

"No. The house is empty. Go ahead."

Megabyte vanished. Jade looked up at Damon. "He won't stay away that long."

"No, but he might eat something." Making a face, he added, "And shower." Jade smiled, and he added, "You're going to eat something too, young lady. I'll have Frank bring up something. And as soon as Megabyte's back, you're going home. Understand?"

"Yes, sir," Jade said meekly. Damon eyed her warily – Jade and meek didn't go together – but eventually he decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and went to go call Frank.

 

It took him a long time to wake up – he seemed to drift, aware of his surroundings but more asleep than awake. Finally, though, he couldn't pretend anymore and he sat up, looking around.

The room was not exactly bare – bookshelves and a TV made it look vaguely homelike – but it still seemed oddly cold and impersonal. He shivered, sitting on the edge of the bed for a long time before sliding off it and crossing to the door. He was half expecting it to be locked, but it swung open at his touch.

There was noise outside the room – movement, and snatches of music. He followed them without thinking, heading downstairs and through a living area to the kitchen.

A girl stood at the sink, working at something; she was wearing headphones, singing phrases under her breath, and didn't hear his soft 'Excuse me...'

He touched her shoulder lightly; she spun, knife held out in front of her. He took a quick step back, hands rising, but she was already lowering it, dropping it into the sink behind her without looking away.

"Sorry! I'm sorry, I didn't hear you. Adam, right? I'm Rachel." She hooked her headphones down around her neck.

"Where are we?"

"Hospital...Adam, how much do you remember?"

"Adam?" he repeated helplessly.

"Yeah, that's your name. Look, sit down; Bernard'll be here in a few minutes."

"Who's Bernard?" He let her steer him to a couch in the next room.

"Our doctor. He'll explain everything, promise. Just relax."

"Where are we?" he asked again.

"Just outside Dublin."

"Dub... _Ireland?_ "

"Yeah. Why? Where did you think you were?"

He scrubbed a hand through his hair. "I don't know. Somewhere...a beach."

"Well, that's probably a memory. You're Australian, Adam. Lots of beaches." She grinned at him.

"Talking out of class, Rachel?" An older man joined them, waving Adam back when he went to rise. "No, no, sit down, Adam. How are you feeling?"

"Confused."

"Apart from that. Tired? Headache?"

"A bit – where am I? Who are you?"

"My name is Doctor Bernard Matthews, Adam. I run this Centre; we treat teens with amnesia. Right now you and Rachel are the only patients, so I'm the only staff member on-site. With me so far?" Adam nodded slowly, and he continued, "Almost a week ago you were in an accident. Mostly cuts and bruises, but you developed retrograde amnesia...that is, you remember how to walk, talk, eat, all of the everyday things, but not specific memories. Am I right?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah. It happens sometimes with head injuries. The hospital tried to treat you, but they weren't getting anywhere and you were getting upset, so you were transferred here."

"I don't remember any of that."

"That happens to me all the time," Rachel offered. "It's 'cos your memory's still a bit confused. It should start to ease off."

"What about my family? Why didn't they bring me home?" Adam pressed the heel of his hand to his forehead, trying to force the pain there away.

 

Megabyte sat bolt upright in bed, one hand going to his forehead. "Adam?"

 

"You're emancipated. We talked to your GP and your government. This is a trial, nothing more; if you don't improve here, we'll send you home. Now I'm going to give you a painkiller for that headache I can see getting worse, and I want you to get some rest. We'll talk after dinner, alright?"

Adam didn't answer, didn't even look up until Bernard touched his arm. "I don't want that," he said automatically, eyes on the needle in Bernard's hand.

"It's just a painkiller."

"I don't care. I don't want it."

"I'm sorry, Adam." Bernard tightened his grip, pulling his arm straight. "But I am your doctor, and you need this."

Adam didn't fight him, wary of the needle breaking, but as soon as Bernard was done he yanked his arm back, cradling it against his chest.

"Now get some rest," Bernard told him, unconcerned by the glare.

"It's alright," Rachel added, lifting a blanket from the floor. "Just rest, Adam."

Her words echoed in his head. He felt very heavy and slow, and when she pushed gently at his shoulder he didn't resist, letting her ease him down.

_Adam – Adam – Adam..._

The voice in his head had changed; still female, but now British rather than Rachel's soft Irish. Adam had a hazy image of dark skin and braids, but he was asleep before he could pursue it.

 

Ami sat back, shaking her head. "No. I thought I had him for a minute, but now there's nothing."

"He was there," Megabyte agreed. "I think he fell asleep."

"Not with us calling him," Ami disagreed. "He heard us. He must have been sedated."

"Yeah. Hey, what about Sarah? You get any trace of her?"

"Nothing. Not a hint. I hope she's ok."

Megabyte nodded. "We should go talk to my dad, see if he has anything."

"You go. I'm going to keep trying. Maybe I can get one of them."

"Be careful." **Jade? I'm coming back. Warn my dad, will you?**

Ami turned back to the central column as Megabyte vanished, watching the light flare and dim. "Where are you, Adam?" she murmured. "Give us a sign."

 

"A sign," Adam murmured drowsily.

"Are you awake?" Rachel asked quietly.

"Yeah." He sat up, frowning at the fuzzy feeling inside his head, and looked down, blinking. "You're on the floor."

"Well, the couch was occupied."

"How long have you been sitting there?"

"A while." She offered him a glass of water. "Here. It'll clear your head."

"How long have you been here, Rachel?"

"Three weeks, give or take. Drink the water."

"Why? What's in it?"

She smiled faintly, rising from the floor to sit next to him. "Just water, I promise."

Adam stared down at the glass, rolling it between his palms. "They're looking for me," he said abruptly.

Rachel's hand closed over his and she lifted the glass until he had to drink or sit back. "Who's looking for you?" she asked when he lowered the glass.

"My friends."

"What friends?"

Adam stared at the glass, searching desperately for names. " _My_ friends," he said finally.

"Alright," Rachel agreed easily. "It's late; do you want to eat?"

"I'm not hungry."

"Better not let Bernard hear that, he'll dose you."

Adam frowned at the matter-of-fact tone. "Really?"

"He's..." She hesitated. "I always get this wrong. A pharmopsychologist? He treats mental illness with drugs."

"We're not ill," Adam said automatically.

"No?" Rachel took the glass from him, standing up. "Get some rest. Bernard'll be back in a while."

Adam watched her go, rubbing absently at his temple.

**Adam?**

"Yeah?"

Rachel paused, looking back at him. "Sorry?"

"Did...I thought you called me."

"Huh-uh, not me. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah. I'm fine."

**Adam? Can you hear me?**

He sat back, considering for a moment before responding mentally, **I can hear you.** Briefly it occurred to him to wonder how he knew how to do it, but the question was lost under the response.

**Adam! Aw, buddy, you don't know how good it is to hear your voice! Sort of.**

Male, American, his own age or a little younger. Adam struggled for a name, but it was just out of reach.

**Are you ok? Where are you?**

**Where are you?** Adam countered.

**In the Ship, where else? We've been looking for you for days.**

**Megabyte,** Adam said abruptly.

**Yeah?** The tone sharpened. **Adam, you know who you are, right? Who we are?**

Adam jumped as someone touched his wrist. Bernard was crouching in front of him when he opened his eyes...when had he closed his eyes?

"Adam? Back with us?" Bernard was looking at his own wrist, taking Adam's pulse.

"Did I leave?" Somewhere in the back of his mind, Megabyte was yelling at him.

"You were non-responsive for a while. How do you feel?"

"I'm fine." Megabyte was getting louder; Adam risked closing his eyes, trying to block the sound.

"Adam, stay with us," Bernard said sharply.

"I am. My head..."

"OK. Hold on a second. Rachel, come here."

Rachel's fingers replaced Bernard's on his wrist, and she smiled at him.

**ADAM!** Megabyte yelled.

**Stop,** Adam said firmly. **You're not helping.**

**Stop ignoring us. Do you know how worried we've been?**

**I have to go. Stop calling me.**

**Adam, don't go!**

That was a girl's voice, a young girl, and no matter how he tried Adam couldn't attach a name to it. **I'll be back,** he said, ruthlessly blocking them out as he felt Bernard's needle slide into his arm.


	6. Chapter Six

Jade was crying.

Megabyte swung clumsily out of the cradle and sank down beside her, wrapping an awkward arm around her shoulders. "He's ok."

"We should just go to him!"

"No." Megabyte glanced up as Ami joined them, gratefully letting her take Jade. "He'd tell us if it was safe."

"He doesn't know who we are," Jade snapped. "For all he knows, we're the bad guys!"

"He knows us." Megabyte scrubbed at the bridge of his nose, fighting back a headache. Staying in touch with Adam had been much harder than it should have been.

"He knows your name. He doesn't know who we are. And he didn't recognise me."

"No..." Megabyte said vaguely. Adam's shields, normally impenetrable, had been fluctuating wildly, as though he'd forgotten about them. "Forgotten."

Ami eyed him carefully, but when she spoke it was to Jade. "Come on. Let's go get something to eat. Megabyte, are you coming?"

"No. Can you check in with my dad?"

"Yeah." **Be careful.**

Megabyte nodded, watching them leave before turning to look at the cradle. "Come on, Adam. Where are you?"

 

"It's not working. The boy's too stubborn. We'll have to move him on."

"Take care of it tonight, then."

"And the girl?"

"Can you keep her?"

"She doesn't know up from down. She's not a problem, but if we're moving the boy on I won't have much time for her."

"Have you learned enough?"

"Almost everything I wanted."

"Move her on, then. We'll make sure to be ready for the next one."

 

Adam was alone when he woke this time. Fighting the familiar fuzzy feeling, he followed the quiet sound of music until he found Rachel. Lying on her back on the couch, she didn't acknowledge him, but when he crossed to stand beside her she drew her knees up to make room for him.

"There's water," she said, gesturing vaguely.

"No. Thank you. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I took my pills. I'm a bit..." She gestured again, just as vaguely.

"So I see."

If he concentrated, Adam could hear the girl calling his name. He was careful not to pay too much attention to her, wary of Bernard.

"What are you watching?" he asked to distract himself.

"I'm not. Just noise." She rolled over, reaching for the remote to mute the TV.

"You know this is wrong," Adam said quietly. Rachel didn't answer, and he repeated, "Rachel. You know this is wrong."

"I think my parents are dead," she said thoughtfully. "Bernard says they're coming, but they never do. It never surprises me."

"We can't stay here. He's not helping us."

"Can't go anywhere. Nowhere to go." Her gaze drifted up over his head.

"Quite right." Bernard's hand dropped onto Adam's shoulder. "Adam, if you're not happy here, there are other hospitals you can go to. I can have you out of here this evening, if you want."

The girl – _Jade_ , Adam thought, _you're Jade_ – was screaming at him, something about people being killed tomorrow. He couldn't block her out, she kept pushing back in, and he was missing half of what Bernard said.

"Headache again?"

The needle in Bernard's hand spurred Adam to focus; Jade fell silent, and he had the odd feeling she was watching. "No. No headache. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? I think I'd better give you this anyway. Just in case."

"No." Adam rose to his feet but he couldn't go anywhere, backed against the couch.

**Adam.** Megabyte's voce was suddenly very clear. **We can help.**

**Stay there,** Adam said quickly.

**You can trust us.**

**I'm not worried about you, it's him I'm afraid of. Stay away from here.**

**Just come _home_ ,** Jade said plaintively.

Adam scrambled past Bernard into the main part of the room. "Rachel?"

She blinked, looking up. Whatever medicine she was on, she didn't seem to have realised anything was wrong, even with Bernard chasing Adam around the room. "Yeah?"

"I'll be back for you."

He vanished.

 

He crashed into the sea, spluttering back to the surface. He wasn't far off shore and it only took him a few minutes to swim to land.

Megabyte was there to help him out of the surf, studying him warily. "Adam, you ok?"

"Yeah, Megabyte, I'm alright." _Although I wouldn't recognise you if you hadn't spoken_ , he thought grimly. He glanced around. "Where are the girls?"

"With my dad. I thought you'd rather not be crowded yet."

Adam nodded. "Thanks."

" _Are_ you ok?"

Adam sighed, hearing the difference in the question. "Can I get changed first?"

"Yeah." Megabyte studied him for another minute before nodding, backing up a couple of steps. "In the Ship."

"In..." Adam shook his head. "I don't..."

"There." Megabyte pointed and Adam turned to follow the gesture.

"...right. In the Ship." He glanced back at Megabyte – for support or reassurance or help, he wasn't sure which – and crossed to kneel in front of the upswept arm. "How does..."

He ran a hand around the rim of the hatch, wiping the sand away, and blinked when it telescoped open, sucking him in.

Megabyte was waiting below, dry clothes already in his hands. "Took the fast road," he said off-handedly. "I don't think you're there yet. Sarah couldn't do it when we fished her out of the water."

"Sarah," he murmured.

"She wasn't with you? We figured you guys were together."

"I was with Rachel." He shucked the wet clothes, leaving them in a heap on the floor.

"Rachel?" Megabyte repeated. "Adam, I think you need to tell us everything. You feel up to facing the girls? We should talk to my dad."

"Yeah." Adam pulled on the sweatshirt, running a hand through his hair. "Just – I remember Jade, but I don't remember the other girl's name."

Megabyte flinched, lowering his gaze. "Ami. Her name's Ami."

"And your dad is..."

"Damon, General Damon. Adam, do you remember anything?"

"Not really," he admitted. "I should, I know I should. This place, it's so familiar. But I can't...I just can't reach it. I'm sorry."

Megabyte shook it off, smiling. "Hey, it's no big. We helped Sarah, we can help you. But let's go talk to my dad before you start forgetting the important stuff, ok?"

"Yeah. OK."

 

The teleport left him feeling dizzy, and it didn't help when Jade threw herself at him before he'd even looked around. He stumbled back a step; Megabyte braced him until he caught his balance, moving away to stand with Ami.

"Hey...Jade...I'm alright. It's ok. I'm back, ok?"

She let go, pulling back to stare at him. "You remember me?"

"I...a bit, yeah. It's still pretty confused." He glanced at Ami, holding out a hand and tugging her into the hug. "Hi, Ami," he murmured.

"We were so worried about you!" She pulled free, slapping him. "You should have just come home!"

"Didn't want to leave Rachel." He let the girls go, looking past them to General Damon. "General."

"Adam. Good to see you safe. Are you alright?"

"A bit mixed up, still. Nothing serious."

"Do you know where you were?"

Adam nodded, sitting on the couch. Jade immediately dropped next to him, and he grinned at her. "Rachel said just outside Dublin."

"You believe her?"

"She wasn't lying."

"Adam, she sat and _watched_ that guy try and get you!" Megabyte protested.

"He's got her on something. Some kind of..." Adam rubbed at his arm. "I don't know, a sedative? She wasn't tracking very well, but she wasn't lying to me. Not about anything."

"What about you?" Damon gestured to his arm.

"He knocked me out a couple of times. And he was blocking..." He gestured vaguely. "I couldn't really hear you guys, and I'm not sure I can teleport yet."

"Plus, the whole amnesia thing," Megabyte added. 

"Yeah. That, too."

"Adam, Rachel was with us for a day before you both vanished. Did she seem to remember any of that?" Damon asked.

"No. She said she'd been in the Centre on and off, but she didn't recognise me or ask about you or anything."

"Alright." Damon pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen. "Start from the start. You vanished six days ago."

"Six? No. It's only been two."

"Sorry, buddy," Megabyte apologised, "but he's right. Six days ago you went after Rachel and you both vanished. We couldn't find any trace of you until yesterday."

Adam took a deep breath, nodding slowly. "Alright. Six days. I woke up yesterday."


	7. Chapter Seven

Halfway through the story Damon had sent the girls away – "Adam must be hungry, why don't you go find something?" – and Adam had hurried through the ending before they came back. Damon was now studying his notes while Adam forced his way through the sandwiches Jade had brought back.

"Well, Bernard Matthews is obviously a fake name," he said with a sigh, putting the notes down.

"Is it?" Adam finished the last sandwich, smiling – a little painfully – at Jade.

"Bernard Matthews is a company who make frozen meals," Megabyte said dryly.

"...right. So fake name, then."

"Why haven't we gone back there already?" Jade demanded. "We don't know what's happening to Rachel!"

"Because we don't know where it is yet," Adam reminded her. "I can't get there, and we can't sense Rachel. We need the General to find something."

"No pressure, Dad," Megabyte said cheerfully.

"Thanks, Marmaduke," Damon muttered.

Adam caught Megabyte's eye, mouthing 'Marmaduke?' Megabyte waved it off, glowering when Ami smiled.

"General, can I talk to you?" Adam asked abruptly, rising to his feet.

"Uh – sure. Why don't..."

"We go to the Ship?" Megabyte interrupted. "Maybe Rachel's back online. We'll see what we can find."

"You ok?" Ami asked quietly.

"Yeah, Ami, I'm fine. I just need to talk to General Damon for a couple of minutes."

Megabyte hurried the girls on, waving before vanishing. Adam watched them go, shaking his head. "Something tells me I need to do something nice for him."

"Buy the next pizza, that should do it. What's wrong?"

"Maybe nothing, I just...Bernard said I was emancipated. That I have no family. I remember Megabyte and the girls, and you, and I'm pretty sure their mothers...I don't remember mine, though. General...who am I?"

Damon grimaced. "You're Adam Newman. You're the leader of the Tomorrow People. After that...you're a very private person, Adam."

"You don't know." Adam laughed softly. "Of course not."

"Adam..."

"No. It's fine. I'm fine."

"No you're not."

"Doesn't matter, does it?" Adam shrugged tightly. "Have to be their leader whether I remember how or not."

Damon eyed him for a moment before nodding slowly. "Ok. Frank's narrowed it down to four possibilities. Come here and have a look at them, see if you recognise anything."

"Do you have floor plans?"

"Yeah, here..."

 

**Think we've wasted enough time?** Ami asked lightly.

**Maybe. Give it a bit longer.**

**I know we're not looking for Rachel, you know,** Jade broke in. Scrambling out of the cradle, she added aloud, "I'm not stupid."

"Not about you, kid. Adam wanted to talk to my dad without us listening in. Now get back in the cradle. We might find her."

"You're not even looking!"

"It's hard to look for her when you're not helping, so please get back in the cradle, Jade," Ami interrupted. "We need all of us, since she can't answer."

"Adam could."

"Adam had practise," Megabyte reminded her. "Rachel's never fully broken out."

"Let's just try once more," Ami suggested. "Then we can go back if it doesn't work."

Jade rolled her eyes, flouncing back towards the cradle. Megabyte grinned ruefully, gesturing Ami into the other one.

 

Adam glanced up distractedly when they teleported back in. "Hey. We think we found somewhere. Your dad's gone to put together a team."

"Team for what?" Megabyte came around the desk to join him, studying the map.

"To go in."

"This is obviously one of the things you've forgotten, buddy, so let me remind you." Megabyte clapped a hand on his shoulder, teleporting out.

As they reappeared he finished, "We don't send in other people. We handle things like this ourselves."

Adam shook his head sharply, looking around. "You rushing into trouble. Why does that feel familiar? Where are we?"

"Just outside the house you were looking at."

Adam studied the building. "Looks different from outside. Why aren't the girls here?"

Megabyte looked away; after a minute he answered, "My dad came in just after we left. They're trying to put him off." He winced. "Ami's a really bad liar."

"Can you get us inside?"

"Yeah. Hang on." He touched Adam's arm, teleporting them both inside.

 

Adam led them quickly through all the bedrooms; Rachel's was the only one showing any signs of occupancy. Bernard's had a computer, but Megabyte shook his head after studying it.

"Wiped. I can't get anything."

"He's not planning on coming back any time soon," Adam muttered. "Come on."

The ground floor was empty as well; there was another computer down there, but it seemed to mostly have been used for games. Megabyte checked it out anyway, sitting upright. "Got something."

"What is it?"

"Email. He deleted it but he didn't empty the bin. Looks like he was getting ready to go to 'the next stage,' whatever that is." He switched it off, glancing at Adam. "I've got the username. Come on. This is a job for my dad."

Adam blinked. "You just told me we do this ourselves."

"Yeah. This is really more for my dad, though. Come on."

Adam took a step closer, letting him touch his sleeve to teleport them away.

 

"They'll be back any minute, General," Ami said, smiling widely. "They just went to get something to eat. They're on the way back now."

Damon studied her for a long moment. "Adam went to get something to eat, just before we break into the villain's lair."

"...he was hungry?"

"Before breaking into the villain's lair," Damon repeated pointedly.

"He doesn't remember he's supposed to rush into danger," Jade offered.

Damon started to say something else, but Adam and Megabyte appeared before he could. "Finish your lunch?" he asked.

"Lunch...yes." Megabyte pasted on a grin. "Mmm-mm. Good."

"Uh-huh. Look, my team's ready to go, so you guys..."

"It's a bust," Megabyte interrupted. "Bernard's cleared out and taken Sar – Rachel – with him. I found an email on his computer, I sent it to you."

Damon sighed. "Should I bother?"

"Yeah, why break the habit?"

"That was bad," he said flatly. "You shouldn't rush off without telling me. You're in trouble."

"Thanks, Dad, I feel all comforted. Come on, look this up for me."

Ami touched Adam's arm, drawing him away from the others. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah. I just wish I could remember something. Anything."

Ami looked past him at Megabyte, who glanced up and nodded. "Yeah, give me a second."

"For what?" Adam asked, frowning.

"We're gonna try and help you," Ami explained. "Get past the block in your memories. We should be able to break it down."

"We did for Sarah," Jade agreed, joining them.

"You'll see my memories," Adam said slowly.

"No. We won't be looking," Ami promised. "Just helping you with the block. That's all."

Adam nodded slowly. "Alright. Thanks."

"Here." Megabyte sat on the edge of the coffee table, facing him. Jade joined him, perched uncomfortably on the end. "Hold up your hands."

Adam obeyed, watching the others match him.

Damon watched as a light formed in the centre of the circle; Megabyte was murmuring sentence fragments, sliding between telepathy and spoken word as he coached Adam. The girls were silent, Ami biting her bottom lip.

The light flared, Adam's eyes jerked open, and he dropped his hands, pulling away from them. "Stop," he said thickly, pulling away from Ami when she tried to touch him.

"Ami," Megabyte murmured, sliding back until he could ease off the table. "Jade, come on."

The girls joined him at Damon's desk. "Is he ok?" Damon murmured.

"Yeah. It'll just take him a few minutes," Megabyte said. "Have you got anything?" Damon didn't answer, and he said more loudly, " _Dad_."

"Yeah." Damon nodded, looking away from Adam. "Yeah. I've traced the screen name; here."

 

They were being so careful not to look at him, Adam was almost amused. His shields were back in place, but he still felt oddly exposed.

If he hadn't been so conscious of his shields, the faint brush against them might have gone unnoticed. As it was, she might as well have set off a siren to announce herself.

**Adam?**

**Rachel,** he thought, closing his eyes in relief. **Where are you?**

**You went away.**

**Yeah, I know. I went back, but you were gone. Do you know where you are?**

**A room, I dunno.**

**Concentrate,** he urged her.

**A room. 'sis got a window...there's a wall...pretty light...**

"Jade," Adam said softly. "Come here a sec."

"What's wrong?" Damon asked.

"Nothing. I'm talking to Rachel, but she doesn't know where she is. I need Jade to help me." Jade came to sit next to him, joining the link.

**Rachel? You remember Jade?**

**No...**

"Is she alright?" Jade asked.

"It's the stuff he keeps giving her. Just talk to her."

**Rachel?**

**English,** Rachel said dreamily.

**That's right,** Jade agreed uncertainly. **Where are you, Rachel?**

**You keep asking that. I don't know. In a...place, somewhere.**

"Adam," Megabyte said quietly. "My dad's traced the address. From the email."

**We think we know where you are. Keep talking to Jade, ok?**

Adam carefully withdrew, making sure Jade was ok before joining the others at Damon's desk. "The email?"

"He sent it to a Dr Tessla," Damon told him absently.

"Dr Tessla's been investigating ESP," Ami added. "Apparently he decided to go straight to the source."

"Rachel's nurse had worked with the other three children as well before they went missing. No one realised because he stayed working for months after they disappeared." Megabyte gestured to a picture on the screen.

"Bernard," Adam said grimly. 

"That's why he was coming and going all the time," Ami agreed. "He was still working the rest of the time."

"So where's Dr Tessla?" Adam asked.

"We have an address, a warehouse rented in his name," Damon said carefully, "but we're not sure if..."

"Jade, keep talking to her," Adam ordered quickly. "Ami, help her. Megabyte, let's go."

"Adam, _wait_ ," Damon protested.

"He killed the other Tomorrow People," Adam said firmly. "He's not doing it again. We're going."

Damon nodded slowly. "My team is ten minutes out. Got that?"

"Ten minutes, got it. Megabyte." Adam vanished; Megabyte grinned weakly and followed him.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Adam, we lost Rachel,** Ami said, just after they reappeared in the building.

**Lost her?** Adam repeated.

**She just faded out of the conversation, and we can't get her back. Should we come join you?**

**No. Get General Damon to his team, and stay with him.** He looked at Megabyte, frowning. **This isn't right.**

**It's empty,** Megabyte agreed, studying the corridor. **Want to head back?**

**No. Let's look around. There has to be something here.**

**Wanna split up? Cover more ground.**

**Yeah, alright. Be careful.**

**Aren't I always?** Catching Adam's look, he added, **Sorry, bad joke. I'll be careful.** He headed for the stairwell, glancing in both directions before going down.

**Adam, General Damon's men are about five minutes out,** Ami told him. **Are you sure you don't want us in there?**

**No, stay with him,** Adam said firmly, checking a room and moving on. **We still don't know what's in here.**

**You shouldn't be in there,** she murmured.

**Since he is, maybe you could stop distracting him?** Megabyte suggested. **Adam, I might have something here – this is the first locked door I've seen.**

**Where are you?** Adam paused in the middle of the corridor, listening.

**Couple floors down from you, some kind of basement. I – hang on.**

Adam checked the next room absently. **Megabyte?** Megabyte didn't answer, and he said again, **Megabyte?**

**Yeah.**

**You alright?**

**I've got kind of a problem here – don't try to teleport in,** he added hastily.

**What problem?**

**Bernard's here, and he's not happy that we're poking around.**

**Has he hurt you?** Adam demanded, looking for the nearest stairs.

**No.**

**Megabyte, just get out of there,** Jade begged.

**Can't. Rachel's here, and she's pretty out of it. I can't get to her.**

**I'm on the way.** Adam let himself into the stairwell. **What's he doing?**

**Ranting, mostly – oh, shit. Ami, tell my dad he's armed.**

**With what?** Adam and Jade demanded simultaneously.

**A gun. I don't know what kind. Does it matter?**

**I'm almost there.** Adam reached the bottom of the stairwell, concentrating for a moment before slipping into the corridor. **If I distract him, can you – **

**He knows you're there,** Megabyte interrupted him. **He's got a security monitor down here.**

**Ami, we're in the basement,** Adam said quickly. **In the west half of the building. I don't think there's anyone else here, but tell the General to be careful anyway.** He blocked her before she could answer, weaving a shield to keep her from seeing whatever was about to happen.

**Living dangerously,** Megabyte noted. **She won't be happy about that.**

**Deal with it later,** Adam muttered. **Ready?**

**As I'll ever be. Adam – this guy has more'n a few screws loose. Be careful. **

**Aren't I always?**

He pushed open the door and stepped into the room.

 

"He cut me out," Ami said in disbelief. "Why would he..."

"What does that mean, cut you out?" Damon demanded.

"It means we can't talk to him," Jade explained quietly.

"At all?"

"Not without completely distracting him from whatever he's doing. Until we get in there, we're as blind as you are."

"You aren't coming in." Damon raised a hand to cut off their protests. "If Adam's worried enough to cut you off like that, I'm not taking you inside. Not until we know what's going on." To Jade, he added, "And no teleporting in when my back is turned."

"We can help," she protested.

"Help from out here. This man is trying to get his hands on as many Tomorrow People as possible. We need to keep you two away from him. I'll leave Frank with you, if Adam or Megabyte start talking he'll let me know. Alright?"

"We'll stay here," Ami promised. "Go quickly."

Damon nodded, climbing out of the van and heading away.

 

"Adam," Bernard said amiably. "Come in, come in. Join us. We were just getting to know your friend."

Adam stepped into the lab, glancing at Megabyte. He was standing against the back wall, tense and still; Bernard was standing a few feet in front of him, holding the gun, though it wasn't actually aimed at anyone. Rachel was sitting on a gurney closer to the door, legs swinging idly.

Adam met Megabyte's eyes. "You ok?"

"We're all getting on great," Megabyte assured him. "Even better if he wasn't waving that thing around, but..."

Bernard glanced at his gun. "This? Insurance. Rachel, dear, Adam is very late for his medicine. It's on the counter behind me. Give it to him, please."

**Adam...** Megabyte said warily.

**It's alright,** Adam told him. Out loud, he added, "She's going to wake up, you know."

"No, no, she's not. She's moving to Stage Two today, she'll be sedated ninety per cent of the time. No waking. Rachel?"

Rachel stared at the counter. "I can't do the injections," she said dreamily.

"That's alright. There are pills in a little bottle there, do you see them? Give him two of those." To Adam, he added, "The dosage will be all wrong, but it'll be a start."

"And then you'll let Megabyte go," Adam said evenly. "You won't need him. He can go."

"Of course," Bernard agreed.

**Adam, he's lying,** Megabyte protested. **Don't take anything.**

**Megabyte, it's alright. I know what I'm doing.**

**Yeah, getting yourself killed!** Out loud, he added, "Adam, don't!"

Rachel carefully handed him two white pills and a bottle of water. Adam smiled, dipping his head to catch her eye. "Thank you, Sarah." She drifted back to stand near Megabyte without seeming to register him.

"Rachel," Bernard said quickly, "come and sit over here. You're tired."

"Yeah, I am," she agreed, obediently crossing the lab.

"Take your medicine, Adam, like a good boy."

**Adam...**

Adam swallowed the pills, taking several swallows of water. "Tell me why," he said, dropping the bottle onto the nearest counter. "Why take away our powers? What good is that to you?"

"The block on your powers is a side effect. And one that's far more effective on someone who hasn't broken out yet than on someone who has. You teleported away from me, after all, and I suspect you were talking to your friends long before that." Bernard shrugged. "You Tomorrow People are so unpredictable when it comes to medicine. None of you react the same way. It makes tailoring the formula – problematic."

"But why do..." Adam stumbled, catching himself on the nearest counter. Megabyte started towards him to help; Bernard swung around, gun raised, and he backed up again, hands raised in surrender.

"Why do it at all?" Adam finished, swallowing hard.

"Money, Adam. The formula needs perfecting, yeah, but it works out either way." Bernard took a couple of steps towards Adam, watching him. "Powers and no memories...Dr Tessla gets kids who know nothing but what he tells them. Memories and no powers...there are plenty of people looking to keep your people down."

"It can't be that useful. There are so few of us."

"More useful than you think." Bernard glanced from him to Megabyte and back. "Oh. Didn't you realise? Well, looks like it worked even better than I thought it would."

"What did?" Megabyte asked.

"Rachel wasn't going to break out. She wasn't strong enough. Only the very best break out, and she isn't one of them. I induced it." He looked ridiculously proud of himself.

**Adam?** Megabyte asked warily. Out loud, he said, "You made her break out and then blocked her powers?"

"There are many more almost Tomorrow People than you know. Those who almost break out. People with just a touch of intuition, just a little more understanding than most. I can find them, and we can use them." He smiled again. "You'll never even know about it."

Adam swayed, trying to catch himself again, but he missed, crashing to the floor. Rachel looked up, watching as he dragged himself into a seated position. Bernard crouched, watching carefully.

"It won't work," Adam murmured, head hanging low.

"Oh, it will, Adam. You and Megabyte, you're going to teach me how to get exactly what I want. And once that's done – well. We'll see what happens from there."

"No. It won't. Know why?"

Bernard leaned in closer. "Why?"

Adam lifted his head, smiled cheerfully, and tackled him.


	9. Chapter Nine

Megabyte caught Rachel's arm, tugging her to the back of the room as the door burst in. Three of Damon's men joined the fight on the floor, quickly subduing Bernard and freeing Adam to join Damon.

"What is..." Megabyte trailed off, frowning.

Adam glanced back at them, smiling absently, and he and Damon came to join them. Ami and Jade teleported in at the same time, Jade throwing her arms around Adam.

"Whoa, Jade." He caught her easily, no trace of unsteadiness. "Everything's fine."

"Adam, what's going on?" Megabyte demanded.

Adam looked at Rachel, who held up a small packet. "Tic tacs," she said, smiling faintly. "Much tastier."

Megabyte frowned, studying her. **Is she...**

**High as a kite,** Adam confirmed with a sigh. "But, luckily, aware enough to help me." Glancing over his shoulder, he added, "What about Bernard?"

"We'll take care of him. And Dr Tessla. Don't go anywhere, I'll be back." Damon turned away, going to talk to his men.

"Are you really ok, Adam?" Jade asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Memories all intact."

"And you?" Ami asked Megabyte.

"Yeah. You couldn't have told me the plan?"

"I wasn't sure," Adam admitted. "I was pretty sure Sarah was hearing me, but she wasn't answering. I couldn't be certain until she gave me Tic Tacs instead of pills."

"Adam, do we even know what you two were on? If it's safe to just stop taking?" Megabyte asked. "You've only been gone a few hours, there's still junk in your system. And Rachel's been on it for weeks."

"We'll deal with that. Sarah was alright the day she was with us. I think we'll be fine."

**Are we going to tell...**

**Shush.**

Damon came back to join them as his men led Bernard out of the room. "That's that. What are you going to do?"

Adam glanced around the group. "We'll head back to the island."

"Sure?"

"Yeah. We're better off there. We'll see you tomorrow."

"Can you call my mom?" Jade asked, smiling brilliantly. "Thanks!"

"Me too?" Ami asked.

"Yes, fine, I'll call the parents. You are going home tomorrow?"

"I'll let you know," Megabyte promised.

"Sarah?" Adam said quietly. "Come to the island with us?"

"If you like," she agreed, obediently taking the hand he offered her. Adam glanced at the others, teleporting out.

 

 

Adam was asleep within half an hour of reaching the island. Rachel wasn't far behind him, and Jade drifted off a little later. Ami went home, promising to come back the next morning to let Megabyte go to see his father.

By the time he reached World Ex, everything was taken care of. Tessla had been arrested and neither he nor Bernard would be released.

"What about his research?" Megabyte asked. "We can't let that get out."

"Burned," Damon assured him. "All his notes, all the formula he had, the computers. Everything. How's Adam?"

"Sleeping. He dropped off pretty much as soon as we reached the island, him and Rachel both. I'm gonna go back, unless there's anything...?"

"No, go ahead. We're pretty much done here. When Adam's feeling better, ask him to come see me, will you?"

"Sure, Dad." Megabyte waved, teleporting out.

Neither Ami nor Jade was in the Ship, but Rachel was awake, sitting by the control column. "Hey, you're up." Megabyte dropped to sit beside her. "How are you feeling?"

"Not too bad, Megabyte."

"You remembered," he said cheerfully. "That's great. How much do you remember?"

"Everything up to the first time Bernard took me. Most of the day I spent with you. Bits and pieces of last night – last night?"

"Yesterday, afternoon. You've been asleep for nearly twenty hours."

"It doesn't seem like that long. Where are we?" Catching his look, she added, "I remember the Ship, but I don't think you said where."

"Oh. We call it Tapahini. We're somewhere in the South Pacific, not exactly sure where."

"That explains the time lag." Rachel stood, wandering towards the window.

"You'll get over that. After a while you'll just stop lagging. It's kinda neat, actually."

"Sounds it," she agreed. "Can I get up to the beach? I'd like some air."

"I'll take you. We need to practise your teleporting a bit before we trust it. Do you need anything, something to eat or whatever?"

"No, Ami got me something before she left, thanks."

 

 

Almost thirty hours after confronting Bernard, Adam finally woke up. Megabyte was sitting in his doorway, reading, but none of the others were around.

Adam cleared his throat and Megabyte looked up, surprised. "Adam. Hey. How're you feeling?" He passed over a bottle of water.

Adam sat up to drink it. "I'm fine."

"And how much do you remember?"

"Pretty much everything. I think those four days are gone, but apart from that..."

"Good. Rachel's the same, she's just missing the time she spent with Bernard."

"She's awake?"

"Up on the beach. She's been up there for hours."

"She doesn't remember?"

Megabyte didn't bother asking what he meant. "I don't think so. I didn't ask, and she didn't say. Although she just might not have told me. I wasn't her favourite person even before this."

"It explains why you thought she didn't belong here."

"Yeah." Megabyte grinned humourlessly, wandering across to one of the windows and staring out at the ocean. "Because she doesn't."

"She does now. However it happened, she is a Tomorrow Person now, Megabyte."

"Yeah." Megabyte caught and held his gaze. "She is. Are we going to tell her?"

Adam shook his head. "Not if she doesn't remember. There's no need."

"If you say so. Want me to get her down here?"

"No, I'll go up to her. Coming?"

"Yeah. My dad wants to see you, when you're ready."

Adam nodded, teleporting up to the beach. Rachel was sitting on the tide line, watching the water.

"Hey." Adam hunkered beside her, just out of the waves. "You alright?"

"Yes, of course, I'm fine."

"You're getting wet."

"It's not cold." She took his hand anyway, rising to her feet and following him up the beach. "You look better."

"I feel better. You?"

"I'm fine, Adam. I told you that."

"No, you're not," Megabyte said.

"I am, I'm just...thinking..."

"What about?" Adam asked.

"Mostly about what I'm going to do. I'm still legally insane, after all."

"My dad's working on that," Megabyte told her. "He thinks he might be able to get your doctor's ruling overturned, since your nurse actually was trying to kill you."

"We'll figure something out," Adam told her. "Don't worry about it."

"Thank you," Rachel murmured. "Sorry. I'm not normally..." she gestured vaguely.

"It's your powers coming in. They mess everything up." Megabyte shrugged.

"Yeah, I heard about Kevin and the bus."

"Yeah, poor Kevin," Adam agreed. "Your powers were blocked for so long, it's not surprising they're not quite working right."

"Speaking of." Megabyte bounded to his feet. "Let's try out your teleportation. Go down into the Ship."

Rachel glanced uncertainly at Adam before closing her eyes and vanishing. The boys turned together, looking at the splash several meters offshore.

"Your idea," Adam said with a shrug. "You go rescue her. I'll get a towel."

"She looks really angry."

"You should probably go get her before she gets any angrier, then."

"She can swim!"

"Megabyte, go help her!"

 

A couple of hours of practise had Rachel teleporting with much more success. When she managed to teleport to Boston and back, Adam declared her training a success and left her with Megabyte while he went to see General Damon.

"Tessla's been doing this for a while," Damon told him, handing over a file. Adam glanced at the cover and put it down without opening it. "His records indicate at least a dozen – subjects."

"How did he even find out about us?"

Damon shook his head. "Still working on that. His plans weren't too far from Lady Mulvaney's, from what we can gather. He brought Bernard in to find a way to control you chemically. Tessla had no idea what he was actually doing – he just provided money."

"He's been stopped, right?"

"Yeah. He won't be doing this any more."

"Good."

"One other thing." Damon unlocked the drawer of another file cabinet, rifling through the folders and pulling one out. Closing the drawer, he offered the folder to Adam.

Adam took it, frowning at the name on the label. "What is..."

"I wanted you to know I have that."

"You said you didn't know anything."

" _You_ said I didn't know anything. I said you were private. And you are. But you should know I know."

Adam nodded slowly, putting the file down without opening it. "You didn't tell me."

"Rachel's memories came back. I was fairly sure yours would as well. Besides, that isn't who you are, not the way you wanted to know."

"Thank you."

Damon nodded, taking the file and putting it away again, carefully locking the drawer. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you." He rose to his feet. "I should get back before Megabyte does something to really make Sarah angry. See you."

 

Megabyte left the island when Adam got back. Rachel was in the Ship, reading, when he found her.

"Do you really live here?" she asked, glancing around.

"We all do, sometimes. I have a home, if that's what you mean. This isn't somewhere to live, Sarah."

She smiled faintly. "Sarah."

"That's still your name, right?"

"Yeah. Until we see if General Damon can redeem me, anyway. Jade invited me to hers for lunch."

"You should go. Her mom makes the best deserts."

Sarah smiled, rising to her feet. "I'll see you later, then."

Ami appeared in time to get a wave goodbye, dropping to sit next to Adam. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Ami, honestly." He smiled at the light brush against his shields, more a reminder of her presence than an attempt to see anything, and returned it. "I promise. I'm fine."

"It's kind of scary," Ami said reflectively. "That there are people so determined to stop us, just because we exist."

Adam shrugged. "They haven't succeeded yet. If they try again we'll deal with it. What do you say we find Megabyte and crash Jade's lunch?"

Ami laughed, letting him pull her to her feet. "Sounds like fun."

They teleported out, leaving the Ship empty behind them.


End file.
